3 Blue Jays making good first impressions in spring training, 2 falling well short

The Toronto Blue Jays found themselves in the headlines for all of the wrong reasons over the offseason. Not only did they miss out on all of the high-end stars that they pursued, but they also failed to extend Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Given all of the team's offseason failures, Blue Jays fans were eager for spring training games to finally begin. The future of the team is very much in limbo, but at least the focus can now turn to actual on-field results and not contract talks or free agency misses.

Spring training results often don't mean much in the grand scheme of things, but it's an opportune time for players with something to prove to impress the fan base. Some Blue Jays players have shown a lot thus far in spring training while others have lagged behind.

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5) Ernie Clement is doing whatever he can to win the Blue Jays third base job

One of the slew of players Toronto was linked to and didn't sign was Alex Bregman. Not topping the contract that the Boston Red Sox gave him made sense, but it left the Blue Jays without a clear solution at third base. Ernie Clement sure is playing like a guy who wants that job.

Through his 10 games this spring, Clement has 11 hits in 26 at-bats (.423 batting average) and has launched two home runs with eight RBI. He's put up these monster numbers despite getting hit in the face by a pitch. In fact, the first pitch he saw after missing three days was launched over the left-center field fence.

Clement is an excellent and versatile defender who offers above-average speed, but he hasn't hit much at the MLB level. He had a subpar .692 OPS in 2024, and has a .643 OPS in parts of four MLB seasons. I'm not here to tell you that Clement is going to hit over .400 in the regular season, but he's giving Jays fans reason to believe he might be in for a good year at the dish.

If so, with everything else he can do, the Jays might have themselves a quality starting third baseman, which is not something many expected entering spring training.

4) Blue Jays fans expect more from Jake Bloss

The Blue Jays made what many thought was one of the best trades of the 2024 trade deadline when they acquired Will Wagner, Joey Loperfido, and Jake Bloss in exchange for just a couple of months of Yusei Kikuchi who was having a down year at the time. Of that trio, Jake Bloss felt like the best get from Ross Atkins according to many. Unfortunately, that hasn't really proven to be the case thus far.

Bloss had a 6.91 ERA in eight starts for Triple-A Buffalo after being acquired, and he has allowed eight runs (all earned) in four appearances and eight innings of work this spring. Bloss did throw three brilliant innings his last time out, but allowed two or more runs in each of his first three appearances of the spring.

The right-hander didn't have a chance to crack the team's Opening Day rotation when they signed Max Scherzer, but with Toronto lacking starting pitching depth, Bloss felt like a prime candidate to be the next man up in the event of an injury. Based on how things have gone for the most part, he'll need a very strong finish to his spring for that to be the case.

3) Alan Roden's play has been too excellent for the Blue Jays to ignore

Based on how he played last season, it was a bit surprising that Alan Roden never got a chance to make his big league debut down the stretch, especially with the Jays out of contention in September. Roden slashed .293/.391/.475 with 16 home runs and 75 RBI in 126 games split between Double-A and Triple-A. He even tacked on 14 stolen bases in 15 attempts and 26 doubles.

Given how outstanding he's been this spring, Roden took the team not promoting him very personally. The 25-year-old has seven hits in 17 at-bats (.412 batting average), has hit two home runs, and has drawn five walks. He has a .600 on-base percentage, which, even in a small-ish sample, is absurdly impressive.

The issue with Roden is that even with his brilliant spring, he doesn't really have a place to play on Opening Day. He is a corner outfielder, and the Jays have Anthony Santander and George Springer entrenched in left field and right field, respectively. Once Daulton Varsho is able to play the field, there might be an opening for Roden to take advantage of, but it's probably unlikely that Varsho will be able to throw by the season's opener as he continues to recover from right shoulder surgery.

Regardless of whether he plays on Opening Day or even makes the roster, Roden's play has undoubtedly given Toronto's front office something to think about. If he keeps this up, they're going to have to find a spot for him one way or another.

2) It's really difficult to expect much from George Springer at this point

Once upon a time, George Springer was a bonafide star and one of the best outfielders in the American League. Even in his first two seasons in Toronto, he was an All-Star-caliber player. Unfortunately, he had his worst season in 2023 and followed that up with an even worse 2024 campaign. Based on what we've seen this spring, it's tough to envision a better version of Springer in 2025.

Springer has just three hits in 19 at-bats thus far and has not hit a ball out of the yard yet. In fact, he has just one extra-base hit. There's still some time for Springer to get going, but until he does, why should Jays fans believe he has much left in the tank?

The simple fact of the matter is that Springer is now 35 years old and clearly declining. He's going to get a chance to play regularly as he enters the fifth year of his six-year, $156 million deal, but this is a player who had a 92 OPS+ last season, eight points below league average. If he continues to regress, it's going to be tough for John Schneider to continue to pencil him into their lineup often.

1) Max Scherzer looks better than any Blue Jays fan could've expected

When the Blue Jays gave Max Scherzer a one-year deal worth $15 million this offseason, it was tough to expect much. Scherzer is a future first-ballot Hall of Famer, but he had made just nine starts in 2024, had a 3.95 ERA in those appearances, and is now 40 years old with over 2,800 innings under his belt. Just how much does the right-hander have in the tank?

Well, early returns suggest he's got a ton left. Scherzer has made three starts and has allowed two runs on three hits in nine innings of work. As if that isn't impressive enough, Scherzer has struck out 14 batters without issuing a single walk. Scherzer is tied for fifth in the majors with those 14 strikeouts this spring, and everyone above him has issued at least one free pass.

Will Scherzer be in Cy Young contention in 2025? Almost certainly not, but with how he has looked in spring training, he looks like a bargain signing, especially when he was brought in to be the team's fourth starter behind Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios, and Chris Bassitt. Scherzer is out to prove that even at 40 years of age, he can stay healthy and be an impactful starter on a winning team. His quest has gotten off to an electric start.